Wednesday, August 24, 2016

Moments of Beauty: Concord

Moment of Beauty #1: Liam Bradford
Liam has the best touch of any player on the team (and yes, I'm including Byeong in that :-) This touch allows him to hit shots that shouldn't be possible given his court and feet position. But when he gets in the correct court position, and when he moves his feet well, then Liam hits fantabulous shots that very few on the team can match. That happened yesterday in his singles match. Playing a series of crosscourt shots to his opponent's forehand, Liam kept on getting balls that were closer to the net and wider to his forehand. Finally, he whipped over the top of one of these forehands. He didn't blast it, but he bent it, and it spun down three feet inside the service line but at such a severe angle that it bounced into court 2 next to him. His opponent was flat footed, not expected that angle. It was a quick winner for Liam!

Moment of Beauty #2: Jacob Woolace
Jacob has been a great doubles player over the summer because he's had the big shot when needed. A big forehand or a big serve. At times, however, Jacob has struggled with consistency. In playing his first singles match of the season, Jacob needed that consistency and hustle to win. It took every little bit too. The point I remember the most is where Jacob got scrambling all over the court. Forehand to backhand, stretching out in the doubles alley with a slice and then covering the court with a running forehand. The point lasted more than 20 strokes and finally his opponent lifted the ball long. As Jacob grabbed the ball he pumped a fist, because it had been a point well worth all the hustle!

Moment of Beauty #3: Brandon Nguyen
I could give Brandon two moments of beauty from this match, because two things stick with me. In the midst of a cross court rally Brandon saw the Minuteman at the net creeping toward the center and coolly placed a ball in the doubles alley down the line. Before the ball even bounced, Brandon was letting go a "C'mon!" because it was just one of those shots that feels awesome right when you hit it.

Secondly, Brandon absolutely smoked a forehand volley. It was awesome. That is all.

Moment of Beauty #4: Nathan Oostland
Sometimes, it truly is a single moment, a single shot that is beautiful. That happened in Nathan's match on Tuesday. In the first game that Nathan served, he hit a killer serve to the ad court. Nathan's serve is great when he consistently gets it in. It's fast, it has spin, and it can be directed to his opponent's weakness. In this case, he whipped it toward his opponent's backhand. But it didn't matter, it slammed on the sideline and bounced away from his opponent for an ace! Sweet!